Other existing gun cases and safes exist but require a maze-type or other complicated manipulation of a mechanism to safely gain access to a gun. Some of these devices could easily confuse a responsible owner attempting to open the boxxe2x80x94particularly when in an agitated state of mind and in a great hurry. Moreover, children have been known to demonstrate how to open boxes of that type to an adult unable to do so.
The prior attempts to develop a gun box that allows easy access by authorized adults yet prevents unauthorized or accidental access have not been completely satisfactory. In part, the problem is that existing cases have not been widely acceptedxe2x80x94either because adults find them inconvenient or because children can open them. The need for safer and speedier access more effective than those presently available is apparent.
To overcome the shortcomings of present handgun cases, a new access method is provided. Although handgun cases have been provided in the past, a method for storing a handgun with the barrel pointed down may be included to provide a further degree of safety integrity against an accident.
Accordingly, several objects and advantages of our present invention are:
1. to provide a handgun case that offers substantially quick access, but only to the owner, to the contents of the box;
2. to provide a handgun case that avoids exposing unnecessarily the fact that the box of the present invention encloses a weapon;
3. to provide a handgun case that is economical to manufacture;
4. to provide a handgun case that is portable;
5. to provide a handgun case that is optionally mountable to a suitable surface;
6. to provide a handgun case that has an attractive appearance;
7. to provide a handgun case that offers the prevention of inadvertent opening when, for example, the box is dropped, by providing a sturdy and reliable latching mechanism;
8. to provide a box that will store safely one or more handguns, including a variety of firearms and ammunition;
9. to provide a handgun case that accommodates both loaded and unloaded handguns without the need for a child safety lock or trigger lock for use outside of a case.
10. to provide a handgun case that holds the handgun in a singular and predictable manner, pointed downwardly from the case opening and person accessing the handgun;and
11. to provide a handgun case with an inconspicuous (second) backup latch to lessen the ability of young children to access the contents of the case.
This invention relates to gun cases and, more particularly, to handgun cases that provide quick and easy opening of while providing a child-resistant safety feature. With the new laws restricting access to guns by minors, putting your gun under your pillow or mattress is no longer acceptable.
Many people have firearms for recreational use such as target shooting. Others collect firearms. Moreover, an ever-increasing number of people are keeping guns, such as automatic pistols and revolvers, in their homes and offices for protection. No matter what the purpose for the gun, the gun owner must have a safe storage box to protect the gun against unauthorized access and accidental discharge or misuse.
The presence of a gun in the home or office is a perpetual concern for the owner. Newspaper accounts and word of mouth have recounted the numerous accidents and tragedies associated with the accidental discharge of firearms each year. A large number of serious injuries and fatalities occur to young children. The gun owner also fears arriving at home or work to find an intruder waiting with the owner""s own gun. Thus, unauthorized access even by adults is a concern.
In contrast to the owner""s need for a gun box which prevents unauthorized and accidental opening is the need for immediate access to the gun box and quick and easy grasping of the gun once access is obtained. When the owner suddenly realizes that the gun is needed because an intruder has entered the home or office, the gun box must be immediately accessiblexe2x80x94then easily opened. Thus, although the cardinal requirement in preventing children""s accidents would be to keep the gun box out of sight and out of reach of the child, that requirement may thwart the owner""s purpose in storing the gun: immediate accessibility. A gun kept unloaded in a closet would cost the owner precious time in a crisis situation.
There are several types of existing devices that have been used to carry and store dangerous firearms. Most existing gun cases do not have the barrel pointed downwardly during access. Such boxes make gun handling more dangerous, however, which could result in an injury or fatality of the gun accidentally fired during removal. Consequently, the owner could be liable for such a tragedy, even if the owner did not commit the accident. Every parent is aware of the ingenuity of children who, after observing a person use a key to open and close a box, could easily follow the example and gain access to the dangerous contents within.
All of these factors could pose a serious hindrance in situations of haste or emergency when the gun is needed quickly.
To achieve these and other objects, and in view of its purposes, the present invention provides a portable or mountable gun case for safely storing at least one of a variety of loaded and unloaded firearms, particularly for handguns. The gun case includes a child-resistant latching mechanism.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary, but are not restrictive, of the invention.